Fall Of The Tomb Raider
by Josh14Raider
Summary: On the way to discover a secret tomb hidden away for centuries in the Himalayas, Lara Croft crosses paths with her new nemesis and old friend Sam Nishimura, both having an agenda against each other. "So it has come to this..." She says to Lara, after all that has happened in the past...
1. The Deadly Conflict

__Disclaimer: This is a Fanfiction Tomb Raider story. I do not own the characters originally from Tomb Raider, they belong to their respectable owners. This is just for entertainment reading.__

**\- The Deadly Conflict**

They were once very good friends...But now they have turned into bitter enemies with an agenda against one another. Lara Croft and Samantha Nishimura were fighting it out against each other within the heart of the mountainous regions of the Himalayas. Coincidentally they were after the same thing that had brought them to this stage. To find out who the Visionary Keepers were and what secrets and knowledge they had kept from the rest of world for centuries. Even though they took different paths to get where they were right now, it was inevitable that their paths would cross together in this journey.

It was quite sad how once a great friendship between the two of them had all of a sudden came to an abrupt end. It all happened on that very day where Lara had no choice but do what she had to do, which had brought the consequence of Sam despising and hating her ever since. Lara had tried so many times to make her see reason and open up, but Sam was beyond redemption. She was wanting revenge for what Lara had done...In her mind she had betrayed everything their friendship had stood for, even though Lara had saved her life in Yamatai all those years ago.

The two tomb raiders fought upon equal footing, leaving their guns on the icy ground as they knew they could kill each other within a blink of an eye. No, they took a more honourable approach...The survivor would be able to carry on the quest of voyaging through the mysteries of the Visionary Keepers Tomb. In the mist of the fight it quickly became apparent to Lara that Sam had been preparing for this moment. Her mind and body were trained for this, but lucky Lara had experience to back her up. Sam was fierce in the delivery of her attacks, but Lara managed to thwart and block each move. As much as it hurt Lara to witness this, Sam had also done something to her in the not so distant past that was unforgivable...

Seeing Sam starting to tire out from her jabs and looking a bit frustrated with herself, Lara took this opportunity to go on the offensive. Sam was blown away by the sheer power and anger exerted by Lara, as within a matter of a minute or two Sam was knocked aback. It was payback for the pain and misery that Sam caused, that was all on Lara's mind. With gritted teeth she raged towards Sam ready to deliver the final blow. However overwhelmed in the heat of the moment, Lara was instantly taken off guard by Sam, whom regained her stance and saw a weak point in Lara's footing.

"OMPF!" Lara grunted out as she fell on the cold ground having been tripped up by her opponent. Just as she was about to recompose herself, the next object she saw was a gun pointing directly at her forehead.

"So it has come to this..." Sam stated confidently now that she had the upper hand. She had Lara right where she wanted her.

Lara was defenceless. The situation had turned upon it's head and Sam was no doubt going to finish her off without remorse.

"Sam...Think about what you're about to do!" Lara warned her, feeling the harsh coldness of the snow hitting the side of her temple due to the swift blowing wind. She looked into Sam's eyes and judged whether she could see if she was having second thoughts.

"I've been waiting for this for a long time Lara, there is nothing you can say that is going to stop me!" A determined Sam retorted back. This was it, after all they've been through it was going to end here and now. Lara had to think of something before she pulled on that trigger.

"WAIT!"


	2. Love, Peace and Harmony

**\- Love, Peace and Harmony**

_Looking back into the past..._

A few years had passed since Lara and Kurtis had shared that passionate kiss that night on her balcony, where they were celebrating the defeat of Eric Copper and his malicious plans he had not only for Earth but the whole universe in general. Subsequently Lara and Kurtis's relationship grew as time went by and blossomed. Kurtis promised her that he would not disappear unexpectedly out of the blue, not without letting her know first if he was going away for a while. Lara in the meantime took a long deserved break from all the escapades she had undertaken over the decade. Though it was only a year or two until the call of adventuring beckoned back to her.

It was on that day in December when Lara's world began to change for her. A soft blowing wind rustled the few trees in the gardens of her home. The time was nine o'clock in the morning, and Lara slowly awoke from her slumber. The comfort of her own bed was so irresistible that if it had not been the sound of Winston coming in, she would've fallen straight back to sleep. Lara rubbed her weary eyes as he came round with a tray of her breakfast along with today's newspaper. She turned to her side only to find out that Kurtis wasn't there.

"Good morning Lara, and how are you this morning?" Winston cheerfully greeted her as he placed the tray by her bedside.

"I'm okay thank you Winston, and a very good morning to you too, are you okay?" Lara asked one of her best and personal friends.

"Yes thank you Lara, a bit cold but I suppose it is the season for it. I got you one of your favourite meals, beans on toast."

"Ah great, thanks very much Winston, you haven't seen you-know-who around have you?"

"Strangely he left the manor without saying a word earlier on. I haven't seen him since though."

"Hmmm, okay don't worry about it, we'll interrogate him later if he comes back." Lara winked at Winston and he smiled back at her.

"There is another thing that came for you in today's post, this postcard...but there's something mysterious and off-putting about it as I don't know who it's from." Winston gave a puzzling look at the postcard and handed it over to Lara. She examined it intently. The cover picture featured a landscape picture of the Himalayas, while the other side was nothing more than Lara's address and a scribble of these initials:

'V.K.T'

"Do you recognise the handwriting Lara?" Winston queried after a moment's silence between them.

"...No...I don't know who would have sent this, I'll take another look at it a bit later." A confused Lara answered.

"Okay Lara, I'll leave you to your breakfast" Winston replied, he turned around and headed to the exit, only to be taken completely surprised when Kurtis had appeared out of nowhere through the doorway.

"Morning both, and what a terrific day it is going to be!" Kurtis ecstatically stated.

"Wow you seem to be in a very happy mood, is everything alright?" Lara had to chuckle at his erratic entrance.

"Of course my sweet, why wouldn't I be with my two favourite people beside me!"

"Where did you go to earlier?" Winston questioned him.

"Ah ha, you will find out shortly. Now Lara, before you start tucking into your breakfast, I have an announcement to make."

"What is it?" Lara worryingly asked him. Kurtis then reached out for Lara's hand and gently brought her up from the bedside. As soon as she was stood up, Kurtis gave her a beautiful rose and knelt down before her.

"Lara...These past few years have been like a dream with you, and I want that dream to continue. You have become the most important person in my world and I know in my heart that I will commit, cherish and love you for as long as I live...Lara Croft, will you marry me?" Kurtis proposed, nearly filling up with tears of joy as he said it. He brought out the diamond engagement ring that he had got earlier from his hiding place.

Winston immediately gasped at the proposal. Lara herself was just emotionally speechless...This was so unexpected, she didn't know what to say. Indeed she loved Kurtis and would go to the end of the world for him, but was she ready for marriage... In that moment everything slowed down and after giving it some thought she knew what her answer was.

"Yes!" She shouted at the top of her voice, with the feeling of delight and happiness overwhelming her. The newly engaged couple embraced as they tenderly kissed and hugged each other. Winston was overjoyed with this fantastic news. Though due to the sudden proposal, Lara had completely forgot about the mysterious postcard that had come earlier.


	3. Operation: Crash The Wedding

**\- Operation: Crash The Wedding**

Sam was preparing the equipment she needed to accomplish this personal mission. The time was right if her sources were correct about today. It was meant to be the day of Lara and her fiancé were to be wedded**.** The perfect opportunity for the uninvited Sam to ruin what is suppose to be a special day for the couple. Revenge is a dish best served cold for her as Lara deserves everything bad that could happen, after all the torment she had put Sam through. In the past they were the best of friends, but in Sam's view they were now enemies. Even though Lara had saved her life all those years ago in Yamatai and indeed she was thankful for that, it was the events of what happened after that has caused this hatred. She desired to balance the tables and this was the best way to do it.

"Sam, are you ready to go?" One of the mercenaries had come over to ask her.

"Let's do this." She determinedly replied, dismissing any chance of second thoughts on this plan.

The team of four assembled around the table with Sam taking lead on the operation that they were going to undertake in a matter of a few hours.

"Okay team, we've got the layout of the building here. As you can see from this map it should be easy to get inside the premises without too much hassle. There are three main entry points which we should be able to slip through without raising too much suspicion. If that unexpectedly becomes a chore we have the alternative option of the windows, but that in itself may be too much of a hassle too."

"It depends how many guests have been invited, the more there is the easier it will be to blend in."

"Indeed...However I know Lara, she would only invite people who are closest to her at this very personal event."

"So...why didn't you get an invite if you were the best of friends?"

"It's complicated, but I have invited myself to surprise Lara...Think of it has a reminder that sometimes the past may come back to haunt you."

"What do you plan to do when she sees you?"

"Just wait and see. Right you all know your duties, and if anything goes wrong make sure you get me out of there as I've hired you to do."

"Yes boss."

"Excellent, let's get to this wedding on the double!"

_During that very same day..._

Lara couldn't believe it, the day had finally arrived. The past few months had flown by with all the preparation that has been happening. Winston held onto Lara's hand as they waited till the main hall was all set for their arrival, he can feel her slightly shaking and breathing quite heavily.

"You ready Lara?" He asked softly.

"...Yeah I am." She responded to him.

"Okay, I just want to let you that I'm so proud of you Lara..." Winston said, hoping his words would make her relax a bit.

"Thank you Winston, I don't know what I'll do without you, you're irreplaceable to me." Lara stated, nearly tearing up saying it.

Winston gave Lara a warm smile as the doors opened up into the main hall. Everybody present had stood up and looked at the bride as she walked up the aisle with Winston beside her. She carried a bouquet of beautiful flowers as an enchanting melody played, and ahead she saw Kurtis standing there, smiling and awaiting for her. When she reached him on the landing, she stared into his sapphire blue eyes as he looked back into her hazel eyes. They could read each other's minds knowing that they both deeply loved one another.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the marriage between Kurtis Trent and Lara Croft. If there is anyone who objects to this wedding, speak now or forever hold your peace"

BANG!

The sound of a gunshot resonated the whole building, it echoed violently in a lot of people's ears as they had to cover them up.

"Where did that come from!" Kurtis shouted to no avail. Sam made her move. She came out of her hiding place from the left side seating and stood right in the middle all hooded up. Though Lara instantly recognised her.

"Sam!? What on earth are you doing here!?"

"Hello Lara, nice of you to recognise and remember me! How long has it been since we last saw each other? Hmmmm, let me think when that little incident happened!"

"How many times do I have to tell you, it was an accident!"

"Yeah yeah still using that same excuse I hear. Now I'm going to take a loved one from you, as you had done to me last time we met!"

"What! NOOOOOO!"

But before Lara could do anything to stop the event that was unfolding, she was too late.

BANG!

Kurtis was motionless for just that second, then he began to fall. Lara managed to grab him just before he hit the floor hard.

"KURTISSSS!"

"Lara...I don't...think...I'm going to...make...it...hear this...from...me..I love...you with all my...heart." Kurtis's breathed out his last words to her, as the wound was fatal and he slowly closed his eyes.

"HAHAHA!" Sam gave a menacing laugh throughout the gasps of the witnesses, revenge was indeed sweet.

"YOU!" An enraged Lara shouted, she gently laid the unconscious Kurtis to the floor and darted for Sam.

"Whoops, that's my cue to leave...adiós everyone, I'll no doubt see you in the not too distant future Lara!" Sam retorted.

As Sam tried to get out of the main hall, the crowd of people present did their best to stop her. But that was until her mercenaries intervened allowing Sam to make an easy escape from the premises. She still couldn't believe she had done it.


	4. In Requiem

**\- In Requiem**

"It's all your fault! You killed him! You will never get forgiven for what you have done!" Those were the words that repeated in Lara's dreams. It was like she had been cursed after that horrible day. Sadness and mourning filled the atmosphere, as today was Kurtis's funeral and Lara knew not even Sam would go that low to ruin it.

"Lara, the driver is here to take us there." Winston informed her. He slowly came into her bedroom and initially there was no sign of her until he looked to her balcony.

"Okay Winston, I'm on my way." She said without turning to see him. Knowing that emotions were going to run high, Winston didn't say anything else and left the room.

Whilst breathing in the nice fresh air, Lara was daydreaming, looking up to the blue sky with only a few whispers of clouds. She couldn't help but keep expecting Kurtis to walk right behind her to hold and caress her in his warm arms. But Lara knew she had to face the fact that Kurtis was gone, she had to get back to the real world and deal with reality. Wiping a few tears that streamed down to her cheeks, Lara sighed and then made her way to the car downstairs.

The people present at the funeral were also at the wedding, all there to pay their respects to the fallen Kurtis Trent. Lara had prepared a speech for him, but admittedly she was nervous as this would be the last time she would get to say a farewell statement, and she certainly didn't want to say goodbye. But the time came and she stood up to deliver the eulogy.

"Kurtis, our friend, my love. Though he was quiet at times, I'm sure he touched everyone's hearts here with his presence as he did mine. His father brought him up to be a warrior in the ancient order of the Lux Veritatis, he then went onto freelancing until we met in The Louvre. It wasn't under the circumstances you would expect, but ever since I first laid my eyes on him I knew he was unique and special. The more I knew him after our adventure together, the more I grew to love him..."

There was a slight pause until she continued with her speech, though the tone had drastically changed.

"I will avenge his death, Sam will pay for what she has done. Kurtis...we will never forget you, I love you." Lara vowed, as she ultimately decided to walk away from the funeral.

Gasps and whispering followed after her trail as she didn't look back, knowing that if she did the emotion will take over. It was best to leave it as it was.

"Lara wait!" The voice of Winston came not too far behind. She carried on until she reached outside of the building and then he appeared not long after.

"Lara...Just a little warning before you go. I don't want you see you go down the same path as Sam. Please let it go before this revenge would consume you." Winston pleaded to his dearest friend, whilst panting due to the chase after her.

Lara was about to raise her voice at him...Why would he of all people suggest that Sam should be allowed to get away with this, but she managed to refrain herself due to their friendship.

"It's too late, I know what I need to do."

"...Then whatever you do, come back alive... as you too are irreplaceable to me."

"I will, thank you Winston." Lara promised her faithful friend, and they hugged before she left for home.


	5. Lara's Confession

**\- Lara's Confession**

'Where could she have gone to? What is she doing? What does she plan to do next?' That was all Lara could think about. It was turning into a scary obsession, but she was determined to find out where Sam could have gone or if she had gone into hiding. Either way Lara knew once she finds her justice will prevail in memory of Kurtis...

Pacing up and down in her bedroom Lara tried to get into Sam's mind, what would she do...but after all these years and seeing Sam in that state, it was like looking at an unrecognisable stranger. It wasn't until Lara glanced at the table beside her bed that she saw her answer.

'Of course!' She just remembered about the mysterious postcard that had arrived the same day that Kurtis had proposed to her. It hadn't been touched since then, and this was the perfect opportunity to find out the origins of it and what the initials that were written on it meant. However just as started to examine the rectangular card, Lara sensed she wasn't alone in her home.

"Well that was quite a scene you caused at Kurtis's funeral." A female voice from behind announced it's presence. Immediately Lara swivelled round to see eye to eye with the intruder.

"Ayesha! What are you doing here!?" Lara exclaimed at the surprise of the appearance of her old friend. She didn't even notice whether or not Ayesha was at present at the funeral before she had stormed out of there.

"I came to see how you were, and interested in what you are planning to do in your act of revenge."

"Ah I may have overreacted in that statement at the funeral...It's just all been so sudden and one big horrible state of affairs."

"Don't worry, it's understandable. Lara, you have my sympathies of what happened to Kurtis...He was a wonderful person and it is a great loss.. What I can't understand is who is this Sam, and why would she go as far to kill Kurtis to get back at you?" Sam asked, she was expecting Lara to say the matter was private but instead she opened up and explained the situation to her.

"Sam and I were best friends many years ago, our friendship was so strong that we had no secrets from each other and we even both attended the same university together though Sam was more into documentary making, while I was in archaeology. We were there for each other when times were tough...But all that changed after Yamatai."

"I remember you talking about that terrible ordeal, gives me the shivers thinking what you had to go through."

"Hmmm, I admit the things I saw and lost out there changed me, which in turn had a knock on effect on our friendship and I hadn't spoken to Sam for months. That was until I received a random phone call from her. It first started as a catch up session, but I knew that wasn't the real reason she called, and we eventually got onto the subject that she wanted to talk about. Her father had discovered through his company a secret abandoned temple in Toyko that may have contained secrets and treasures. She wanted me to come along and I accepted the invitation. This is where things started to go wrong...I was faced with an impossible choice..." Lara began to struggle to talk about the event and there was just silence.

"Lara...please, you can confide with me, what did you do?" Ayesha broke the silence and looked into her friend's eyes. There was pain within them and a tear about to run down her left cheek.

"I killed her father."


	6. Memories Of Tokyo

**\- Memories of Tokyo**

Sam Nishimura couldn't wait not only for Lara's arrival here in Tokyo, but for her to also at last meet her father. It was early afternoon and right on schedule Sam saw the plane land in the airfield then made her way to the luggage carousels of the airport. Eagerly waiting to see a familiar face come through, Sam looked around the crowd of people until she spotted her friend.

"Lara! Over here!" Sam spontaneously waved amongst the masses at arrival. Immediately Lara recognised who was waving and on the double hurried over with a chuckle.

"Sam! Good to see you after all this time." Lara embraced her in one big hug.

"Indeed same here, did your flight go okay?"

"Yeah it was pleasant thanks, miraculously I managed to get some sleep on the way here."

"Cool that's good to hear. Right let's get your stuff and head on back home, my dads' looking forward to meeting you."

"Hmmm, the feeling is mutual, come on let's go." Lara replied as she wondered what kind of person Sam's father would be like and what they had discovered.

It wasn't long until the two friends came out of the terminal airport and straight into a limousine courtesy of the media company Sam's father was head of. As the chauffeur drove through the capital of Japan, Lara couldn't help but gaze at the wonderful metropolitan area. They eventually arrived at the headquarters, and headed inside for the elevator. To Sam's surprise Lara was slightly shaking.

"Hey, nervous?" Sam nudged Lara and she jumped a bit.

"Yeah a little." Lara replied, even sounding like she was agitated.

"No need to be, once you'll see my father you will be perfectly fine, it's not like he's gonna bite you is it?"

"Ha, you're right, I don't know why I'm feeling like this."

"Well you'll be fine."

"Thanks Sam."

The elevator doors opened and they stepped through to the reception area for the main office.

"Good afternoon Ashley, is my father here?"

"Ah Sam, a good afternoon to you too. Yes you're father is expecting you, he's just finished his last meeting of the day, so go on through."

"Thanks."

The duo walked through to the office and as expected Sam's father was there, with a huge grin on his face as they entered.

"Welcome back Sam, was the journey there and back to the airport fine?" He began.

"Yeah it was thanks dad. Lara I would like to introduce you to my father, Toru Nishimura." Sam introduced, the pair shook hands.

"It is an honour to finally meet you Lara. Sam has told me all about you and I must say I am intrigued by what I've been told."

"Nice to meet you too Mr. Nishimura, I can assure you whatever you've heard about me has been over exaggeration."

"Haha, no need to be so modest about yourself, I can tell you possess remarkable skill and talent. Sam has even explained in great detail what had happened in Yamatai, no one in your position would've been able to accomplish what you did."

"Yes..."

"My heart skipped a beat just hearing the story, how could you have gone through such ordeal?"

"I don't know... I just did what I felt I had to do..." Lara answered, though she didn't want to dwell on the subject any longer and reassuringly Toru got the message.

"Hmmm... Anyway you must be hungry or thirsty after that flight, would you like anything Lara?"

"Nah I had something on the flight here, so I'm alright thanks Mr. Nishimura."

"Fair enough. Okay no time like the present, let's head over to the site, I'll explain what we have discovered on the way."


	7. Forbidden Tomb Of Chaos

**\- Forbidden Tomb Of Chaos**

"So are we heading back to the limo?" Sam asked her father.

"Certainly not! Instead we're heading to the site in style, follow me!" Toru briskly answered, and the two followed him to a set of stairs leading to the rooftops.

A convenient heliport was installed in the centre of the rooftop, as a helicopter was already present and preparing to take-off when everyone was on-board. It's almost as if this was all planned ahead and everything was right on schedule…

"Are we ready to go Aito?" Toru began speaking to the pilot in a different language.

"Yes sir, we are ready for take-off."

"Excellent, let's not delay any further!"

Lara immediately recognised the Japanese language they spoken to each other and as they said those words she translated automatically in her mind. The propellers of the helicopter began to turn, and not long after they were flying in the air.

"The site is not too far, so take in as much as you can of the view."

The sky was gradually starting to turn into a darker shade of blue, and it had a beautiful effect on the skyscrapers and buildings of the city, as they reflected the skyline. After gazing at the view though, Lara returned to more important matters and wanted to know more about the site they were going to.

"So how did you find out about this site? It couldn't have been as simple as X marks the spot on a map, otherwise others would have discovered it earlier." Lara asked, and was a bit surprised that Sam instead of Toru was the person to answer that question.

"On the contrary Lara, I miraculously just stumbled across it by chance in the park. The lawn had obviously been cut only a few hours before, so you can imagine my hay-fever was going crazy, uncontrollable sneezing every minute or two. However at one point when I sneezed I caught glimpse of a small reflection on the ground. The sun was out in full and there was no one obstructing what I saw. So of course I went over to investigate what it was. Initially I thought someone had just dropped a piece of jewellery or metal, but as I got closer it became apparent that this was no ornament. As I touched the material I knew I was onto something special. The lawnmower the gardener was using must've dug up part of the layer of the mud that was covering it, some coincidence hey!"

"Definitely." Lara was just bemused by the explanation. Sam continued with the story.

"When I found out I couldn't budge or move it at all, there was more to this than met the eyes, that's when I called Dad up about my little discovery."

"Indeed, as Sam explained the intriguing situation, I too knew this sounded like a rare opportunity to discover what mysteries laid buried underneath that area. I pitched the idea to the investors and directors of the company, and with the business backing and sponsoring the dig finally started. I believe when we get there we will see the final stages of whatever it is down there dug up."

"It was around that time too that I decided to call you about this, knowing how much you loved archaeology and history back at uni, and so here you are."

"So I am." Lara smiled.

"Ah we're almost there, get ready for the descent." Toru warned them, and everyone buckled up and held onto something.

The helicopter began to lower in altitude and before they knew it already the trio were standing in front of the newly dug out entrance leading underground. Lara stared at the grand entry in awe. The material that Sam had explained earlier was all around this opening, in all it's shining glory. However Lara noticed something strange in the material, it had engraved markings harshly scratched out on it. Knowing the cause of this wasn't the tides of time, she began to decode the writing until in that short space of time she managed to find out what the words spelled out as... 'FORBIDDEN'.

"Magnificent! Great work everyone, let's head on inside and see what awaits to be found!" Toru happily announced and everyone that was present followed him through. Lara noted as well that the personnel who were at the site had brought weapons with them too. They entered the premises, a lot of cobwebs and dust greeted them as well as darkness until someone had turned on a flash-light. It became more apparent that this was a long lost tomb that had been forgotten about for centuries. Perhaps for one very good reason.

"Wow! I wonder how old this structure is and who had made it?" Sam rhetorically questioned.

"Well I'm sure we'll find out soon enough." Toru answered, gazing in wonder about this new discovery.

But Lara didn't take notice of the conversation they were having amongst themselves. Instead her attention was taken up by the writings on the walls around them. She asked one of Toru's personnel for a torch, and once she got one she used it to read the scripts. Words like Despair and Chaos came to her along the lines.

"What you reading there Lara?" Toru interrupted her.

"These scriptures. I must say the writings here warn of a spirit ahead for any trespassers." She warned, he hesitated for a second before he gave his reply.

"Baah! Ancient hocus pocus designed to scare wanderers away." He immediately dismissed.

"If I were you I would still be careful...It also talks of how a spirit dwells down here, longing of new prey to enter these walls. Remember disrespect is the route to carelessness."

"Now don't you go giving me lectures young lady, I am in command here and we'll do things my way, got it!" He angrily retorted. Everyone present just watched the heated conversation between the two and Sam was just about to intervene until Lara backed off.

"Okay." She was taken aback by the response, if he was foolish enough not to heed her warning then he shall suffer the consequences.

With that brief argument over, Sam looked over at Lara all confused and gave a signal to her, literally saying 'what was that all about!?' but Lara just shrugged back at her not knowing why Toru shouted at her like that. It was soon in the past however as they proceeded to what seemed to be the main chamber. Again everything was covered in dust and darkness, however what it featured was a silver coffin that still oddly enough looked like it was brand new. Then out of the blue a loud rattle echoed at the side of the circular room.

"What was that!"

"We're not alone..."


	8. Death At One's Foolishness

**\- Death At One's Foolishness**

CRASH!

"Where did that come from!?"

"Hehe whoops! Tra la la!"

"Show yourself!" Toru commanded in a strong vocal, but whatever it was just ignored him and continued to make noises.

"Hahahahaha! Weeeeeee!"

"Any ideas of what we are up against, anyone!"

Lara thought of what they had just encountered, what it was and why was it behaving in such a joking manner. But if they can't see whoever was doing all this and all this catastrophic noise was coming from it, that could mean only one thing...

"I can't believe what I'm about to say, but I think it's a poltergeist. It's a type of ghost that causes chaos and destruction within it's path."

"Bingo! She's got it! Yes I used to be a lowly jester when I was among the living, my soul was banished and trapped in these hollow walls underground...lost I was for centuries, but now you've set me free, I'll be forever in your debt!" The mysterious being announced.

"That's...impossible!" Sam expressed in disbelief, everyone else was just awe-struck and speechless.

"Nothings impossible, not if you put your noggin to it. Now then, its time to free myself from this prison, haha!" The ghostly Jester forwardly said.

"What do you mean...what are you going to do!?"

"Possess one of you of course silly, I can't leave this place without a living body! My spirit will bond with yours and slowly but surely my power will suppress your soul and you will be in my control, don't worry it won't hurt, unless you try to fight it!"

"No!"

"Yes! Haha! Now let me see who will become my new best buddy...Eeny, meeny, miny, moe, I choose you!" The Jester's index finger was now pointing straight at Toru Nishimura.

"What! Me!? Spare me please, choose one of the others, I beg you!" He pleaded for mercy, but it was obvious that the poltergeist wasn't going to change it's mind.

"Hehe sorry, but once I've chosen something I don't sway from it, prepare yourself!"

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH HELP!"

It was a moment of mass hysteria, no one could do anything as the jester merged with Toru and then pure silence. Nobody moved, until Sam walked towards Toru who remained motionless.

"Dad..." She spoke out and was about to touch his shoulder until he swirl around so quick it mad everyone in the room jump.

"Hoohoohahaha! Free at last, now time to expand my power and cause havoc to the rest of humanity for locking me away for all these years!"

It was like a jack-in-the-box scene, Sam was completely taken aback by the sudden transformation. The group trained their guns on the newly changed Toru, ready to fire at their boss if indeed he posed a threat. Even though all this was happening, something bigger was occurring also… The whole tomb was starting to rumble and collapse onto itself!

"Quick! Let's get out of here!" One person from the group realised, and with that they dropped of their weapons and ran for their lives. Lara turned her attention to Sam, who was still near her fallen father.

"Sam! Come on let's go!"

"I can't just leave him, he's my father!"

"He's gone Sam! That poltergeist has taken over him! Don't be ridiculous, let's get out of here while we still can!"

"No! He's still in there, I know he is!"

"But Sam…"

Just then the brain-washed Toru hit out at Sam and knocked her unconscious, he next turned his attention to Lara.

"You two will be the first to witness my limitless power, however should I go down with this tomb you'll be joining me!"

"Not if I've got anything to say about that!" Lara retaliated.

"Haha! You've got confidence, but how long will that last I wonder?" He retorted. No more was said between them, as the controlled Toru began to charge at Lara. Seeing the dropped weapons as her only opportunity to end this once and for all, Lara managed to dodge his attack and dived to the side. She reached and grabbed one of the weapons, a shotgun that was left behind, and took aim at her adversary.

BANG!

"Argh! You think that will stop me!" The controlled Toru shouted at Lara in agony.

"Nope, but this next one certainly will!" Lara wittingly answered back.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

With those three final shots it was too much damage the spirit-controlled Toru can handle, and he fell to the ground, only a whimper was heard as his final breath. Lara looked over the lifeless body, a hint of regret was starting to set in, until she snapped back into the real world. The ceiling started to crack under the pressure, and on the double Lara went over to Sam. Still out cold and unable to wake up despite Lara doing the best she could at trying to get her up, all she could do was to carry the unconscious Sam on her back. Using every ounce of strength left, Lara picked up Sam and headed for the exit. Debris and huge pieces of ceiling were falling at a fast rate, the tomb wasn't going to last long...But somehow the duo managed to make it out alive.

"Phew!" Lara breathlessly exhaled out as she carefully put Sam on the ground.

"Ms. Croft, are you hurt!?" One of the spectators who was part of the group asked her.

"No, I'm fine, but Sam's still unconscious."

"Lara..." Sam quietly said out of the blue.

"Sam, are you alright?" Lara came over to her side.

"Yeah, splitting headache though...Where's my father?" Sam got up and looked at her friend, who was stuttering and finding it difficult to answer her question.

"…"

"Tell me Lara...You didn't leave him in there did you?"

"No..."

"Well then where is he? Spit it out!" Sam demanded, getting more impatient as time went on. Lara knew she couldn't lie to Sam, so she decided it was best to tell the truth, surely Sam will listen to reason...

"I killed him..."

"WHAT!?"

"There was nothing we could've done to redeem him Sam, he was already dead when that spirit took over him."

"Wrong! I could've saved him Lara, you know that!"

"I'm sorry Sam...But what I did was the right thing, anyway he didn't heed my warnings about what was in there, it was his own foolish fault what happened in there, we could've all died because of him!" Lara vigorously defended her actions and argued back.

"You! I cannot believe you killed my father… I'll never forgive you murderer! Get out of here, I never want to see you again, whatever friendship we had, it's over now...you have betrayed and deeply hurt me!" Sam angrily stated, though Lara still tried to reason with her.

"He was gone Sam. I know it's hard to accept that, but you have to believe me, come on let's go and have a sit down over this. I am not your enemy Sam, I'm your friend, please listen..."

"No Lara...If I ever see you again...I'm afraid what I'll do to you…now one last chance...GO!"

Lara knew at that point Sam wasn't going to listen to reason, she was too driven into her own belief. Lara didn't look back and left the dreaded collapsed tomb and area altogether and just before she got outside, she could hear Sam's weeping away over the death of her father. This nearly made Lara whelm up inside too, but she concentrated more of getting out of there.


	9. HALO Jump

**\- H.A.L.O Jump**

_Back to the present…_

"Gosh Lara…I don't know what to say..." That's all Ayesha could say after hearing the story from Lara.

"Hmmmm, and that was the last time I saw her. But what I question about this is why now? There could have been plenty of opportunity to have attempted something like that before...it doesn't make any sense."

"I suppose the only way to discover what this is really all about is staring right in front of you."

Of course the postcard, Lara had almost forgotten that she was still holding onto it. The picture of the mountainous region of the Himalayas, and the words on the back resonated in her mind…

'V.K.T'...'What could it mean?'

"But where did it come from, who would have sent it?" Lara questioned though she already had an inkling of who the sender was, she decided to keep that to herself.

"Could it be a trick or even worse a trap?" Ayesha theorised.

"Well there's only one way to find out, I have to go and explore the area to find out what these initials mean."

"Haha...that is an impossible feat to accomplish, we are literally talking about around 1 million kilometres squared of area to cover!"

"I know it sounds like I'm going mad...But I have no other choice, this is the only lead I have."

"Well you are definitely not going alone, I'm coming with you no matter what Lara."

"Thanks Ayesha, I'm lucky to have such a good friend as you."

"Same here."

They were both suddenly alarmed by sound of the front door opening and closing, and then hearing the footsteps coming up the stairs. Until they were greeted by the familiar friendly face of Winston.

"Oh Lara there you are, I'm glad to see you in one piece, and hello to you Ayesha." He smiled at the both of them.

"Hey Winston, we were just discussing about this strange postcard, Lara's filled me in on the details she knows so far."

"Ah okay, so what's the plan Lara?"

"I'm going to the Himalayas, I definitely need to follow this lead to uncover what this is all about."

"Gosh that's a lot of ground to cover, you going on your own?"

"Nah, Ayesha has volunteered to come with me too...You know I'm grateful Ayesha, but you don't have to do this, I'll be fine."

"Tut tut, tough Lara, you're just going to have to put up with me." She winked at her after that remark.

"That's good, at least you'll have a friend and backup just in case anything goes wrong." Winston had a little chuckle to himself at what Ayesha said.

"Yeah, now my only concern is how I'm going to get there, where do I start?"

"Hmmm I've got an idea, I'll call in a few favours for you." Winston strangely said, and both girls just looked at each other in confusion, wondering what kind of favours he meant.

_A few days later…_

The aircraft reached its co-ordinates and had gone at the required attitude for the H.A.L.O jump that Ayesha and Lara were about to perform be possible.

"Wow, now this was out of nowhere, I didn't know Winston knew people high up in the military, and I can't believe we're doing this!" Ayesha laughed at the situation they were in.

"That's the best thing about Winston, he's always full of surprises!" Lara smiled, knowing she owed him one for this favour.

"I still can't believe they are allowing us to do this."

"Neither do I, but we were fully briefed at what to do weren't we?"

"True."

They both checked their inventory making sure everything was present, with them they had GPS watches, climbing gear, Lara had her signature dual pistols and Ayesha had a single one, warm clothing including woolly hats and ski goggles and radios to contact each other as they certainly will be landing at different points within the mountainous terrain. The girls had an assistant onboard too named Jack, who had showed and trained them what the procedures were in the H.A.L.O jump. He was there to ensure everything was going according to plan.

"You got all the equipment that you need?" Lara asked her friend.

"Check!" Ayesha happily answered.

"Good good."

"Ayesha, Lara we're almost at target, are you ready?" Jack announced from his side.

"Ready as ever!" The duo put on their parachute backpacks and oxygen masks on, breathing in the pure oxygen a good few minutes before the jump. This made them a little light headed though it was nothing compared to the current temperatures which were of course very cold, even when wearing five layers of clothing!

Above a green light began to shine, and that was a signal that they've reached their target. Ayesha was the first to stand up and approach the rear hatch which had just fully opened. Standing on the edge of the opening with the wind blowing quite aggressively, Ayesha took a few quick breaths, feeling quite nervous.

"Remember what we taught you?" Jack gently reminded her.

"...Yes."

"Then fly!"

With that Ayesha nodded and she felt herself falling into the sky. Performing the right routine, Ayesha successfully managed to deploy her parachute and soon after she landed below on the mountainous region, Lara made her attempt of the H.A.L.O jump from the plane too.


	10. Mountains Of The Himalayas

**\- Mountains Of The Himalayas**

Coming down at a high rate of acceleration, falling to an altitude of about 28,000ft was when Lara made her move. She pulled the flapping tab to her right and had successfully deployed her parachute. As expected she began to glide down, however a gust of turbulent wind suddenly blew Lara off course from where she was targeting to land.

'Oh blast!' Lara cursed, as she drifted further across the mountainside. There was nothing she could do, other than guide the parachute close to where her original target was supposed to be. Since Ayesha did her H.A.L.O jump before Lara, she managed to miss the turbulent air that had affected her partner, and she had now landed where she originally planned to.

As soon as Ayesha landed, she immediately took off the parachuting equipment and set about deciding where she would start with her trek. Even though visibility was poor, Ayesha saw a glimpse of Lara veering off in the wrong direction...in response to this all she could do was a face-palm.

'Oh Lara, something always happens with you, it is never simple!' Ayesha shook her head, she then proceeded to grab her GPS tracker to find out where she was.

'Ah ha, a good spot to go for a little wander.' She thought to herself, as on the virtual map display it had shown she certainly was in a good position.

...At last with knees and hands deep within the snow, Lara had finally landed. After detaching the parachute from her person, she got out her radio to contact Ayesha.

"Ayesha, can you hear me?"

"Yes, loud and clear."

"Great, sorry about my late radio call...I took a little detour to take in the view!"

"Ha! You're a bad liar Lara, I saw you struggling against the gust of wind earlier!"

"Oh you did...you weren't meant to see that!"

"Haha and not only that but I've got it all on camera!"

"You haven't have you!?"

"Nope, don't worry your integrity is safe!"

"Hehe good, you nearly had me there!"

"Well to give you an update, I'm searching around the area where I've landed, so I'll let you know if I find anything, you?"

"I'm a bit far off where I'm meant to be, so I'll try getting there first...It will be quite a hike from what I can see."

"Hmmm okay, just be careful Lara, let me know if anything happens on your end."

"Will do Ayesha, same to you as well. Over and out."

Lara retracted her radio to her waist holder, then went onto contemplating on how she was going to get back on track. 'Twas about forty minutes in the journey, and already the brutal cold was getting to the duo. Also the repetitiveness of seeing just cloud, rock and snow was tiresome too. Nevertheless they carried on searching to see whether or not they could find any clues leading to discovering the truth and meaning of V.K.T. …That's if it had existed at all. So far it all seemed like a wasted trip.

"Whoa!" Lara exclaimed loudly, she had stopped altogether due to the dead-end in front of her, stopping any progress forward. Looking around to no alternative path, Lara thought for a moment and made up her mind.

'Looks like there's only one way to do this.' Lara equipped her two ice axes, took a few breaths and braced herself for the mountain climbing.

'One...Two...Three.' Lara repeated those numbers as she slammed each axe into the rocky mountainside. The climb was daunting and of course stressful, one wrong move and it could all be over. But Lara is not one to give up so easily, she strove upward making every painful second count.

'Phew! Made it!' A relieved Lara cheered to herself after making her way up top.

"Lara, are you receiving?" The sound of Ayesha's voice instantly surprised her.

"Yeah, go ahead."

"What is your status?"

"I've just climbed part of a mountain and now on topside, where are you?"

"Still on the otherside, you're probably higher than me now. I've checked around my area and there is nothing to report."

"Oh..Okay."

"Disappointing I know."

"Yeah..."

"I'm going to check east next, what about you?"

"….."

"Lara?….Lara? Are you receiving Lara!?"

"Oh my..." It was at that moment Lara had turned around and up ahead was the person she least expected to be up there...

"What is it!?" Ayesha asked frantically.

"It's Sam!"


	11. The Element Of Surprise

**\- ****The ****Element Of Surprise**

"Sam!" An enraged Lara shouted at her new adversary, very tempted to draw her dual signature pistols and shoot her then and there...But first there were some questions that needed answering.

"Ah Lara, I've found you at last!" Sam replied, which confused Lara greatly.

"Huh, what do you mean? What on earth are you doing here!?"

"Haha, so you haven't figured it out yet! How disappointing, I expected better from you!" Sam sneered at her former friend.

"Figured out what yet...You mean V.K.T?"

"Exactly, the three initials that got you out here."

"Let me guess, you were the one who sent that postcard to my home."

"Correct! I had to set the breadcrumbs for you to follow where I wanted you to go...Ha, and indeed here you are, so predictable!"

Lara ignored the insulting remark, however just seeing Sam there, Kurtis's killer was slowly but surely fuelling the rage inside of her.

"Tell me then Sam, what am I doing here? What is V.K.T?"

"Glad you asked, I need your help Lara. A few weeks ago I had the strangest of dreams, no...more like a vision. I was shown magnificent wonders Lara, it was incredible...Riches beyond imagination, sunset paradises, landscapes, the stars, planets and galaxies of outer space. Finally I saw a glimpse of the future...But it all suddenly came to an abrupt end. I then saw a message after which said if I wanted to see more to seek out the Visionary Keepers Tomb in the Himalayas. The dream ended, and from that I knew in my heart that this was real, and I would need help of an expert. As much as I didn't want to, you are the only person I know who dared going on such quests. So I had to plot and plan on how I was going to get you involved in this discreetly, and here you are." Sam happily explained, Lara had one thing on her mind after that.

"Why did you kill Kurtis?" She wondered, ready for Sam to bring up her father as an excuse for revenge, but on the contrary it was more of a sinister reason.

"Because he was a distraction that needed to be dealt with. If you had married him no doubt you would have retired from adventuring and started a family with him. No...I couldn't let that happen, so when I eventually found out when and where your wedding was taking place, I hired some mercenaries to assist me removing Kurtis out of the picture. Not only it was nice for me to at last avenge my father and balance the scales, but to be honest you should be thanking me… I saved you from yourself...you are better off a lone adventurer, you're definitely not a family person." Sam summed up.

Lara couldn't believe what she was hearing, at this point her anger and rage had reached an uncontrollable stage…

"You...killed Kurtis because of your own delusions...I haven't heard anything more ridiculous...You are crazy!"

"No! I am a visionary!" Sam answered back angrily.

Lara had enough of listening to the rubbish Sam was spewing out of her mouth. She unleashed all of the bottled up rage and charged at her new nemesis.

The two tomb raiders fought upon equal footing, leaving their guns on the icy ground as they knew they could kill each other within a blink of an eye. No, they took a more honourable approach...The survivor would be able to carry on the quest of voyaging through the mysteries of the Visionary Keepers Tomb. In the mist of the fight it quickly became apparent to Lara that Sam had been preparing for this moment. Her mind and body were trained for this, but lucky Lara had experience to back her up. Sam was fierce in the delivery of her attacks, but Lara managed to thwart and block each move. As much as it hurt Lara to witness this, Sam had also done something to her in the not so distant past that was unforgivable...

Seeing Sam starting to tire out from her jabs and looking a bit frustrated with herself, Lara took this opportunity to go on the offensive. Sam was blown away by the sheer power and anger exerted by Lara, as within a matter of a minute or two Sam was knocked aback. It was payback for the pain and misery that Sam caused, that was all on Lara's mind. With gritted teeth she raged towards Sam ready to deliver the final blow. However overwhelmed in the heat of the moment, Lara was instantly taken off guard by Sam, whom regained her stance and saw a weak point in Lara's footing.

"OMPF!" Lara grunted out as she fell on the cold ground having been tripped up by her opponent. Just as she was about to recompose herself, the next object she saw was a gun pointing directly at her forehead.

"So it has come to this..." Sam stated confidently now that she had the upper hand. She had Lara right where she wanted her.

Lara was defenceless. The situation had turned upon it's head and Sam was no doubt going to finish her off without remorse.

"Sam...Think about what you're about to do!" Lara warned her, feeling the harsh coldness of the snow hitting the side of her temple due to the swift blowing wind. She looked into Sam's eyes and judged whether she could see if she was having second thoughts.

"I've been waiting for this for a long time Lara, there is nothing you can say that is going to stop me!" A determined Sam retorted back. This was it, after all they've been through it was going to end here and now. Lara had to think of something before she pulled on that trigger.

"WAIT!" Lara called out to her, hoping to reach out to Sam's sensitive side...If there was any left that is. Unexpectedly Sam lowered her weapon.

"No I'm not going to kill you just yet Lara, I still need you. But when your usefulness has come to an end, that will be the time. So are you going to help me find the tomb, or face your untimely death now!?"

Lara still couldn't believe how twisted Sam had become after all these years. She was definitely driven beyond redemption, and Lara had no choice but to comply.

"Yes, I will help you find the tomb."


	12. Monastery Of The Visionary Keepers

**\- Monastery Of The Visionary Keepers**

"Lara! Answer me!...Lara! What happened?" Ayesha frantically kept calling on the radio.

"Who's that!?"

"That's Ayesha, an actual friend who trusts and supports me as I do for her too."

"Don't play games with me Lara, give me the radio!" Sam demanded, Lara did as she was instructed…

"What are you going tell her?"

"You'll see...Ayesha I've got some bad news for you, the dead can't hear you..." Sam said over the radio. It was obvious as she said it she was trying to hold back the laughter.

"What!? What have you done Sam?" Ayesha replied.

"Lara is dead. It's all over Ayesha, go home or else you're next!"

"But..." Before Ayesha could give her response, Sam threw the radio over the mountain cliff.

"Ah there, no more interruptions for us. We can now fully concentrate on finding the tomb!" Sam told Lara, but she just smiled at her.

"You've made your first mistake, Ayesha's not going to believe you until she sees any evidence."

"Oh don't worry about that, we'll be long gone by the time she gets round here."

Four hours had passed with no results from searching around, and Sam was getting ever impatient, Lara had to remind her that patience is a virtue.

"These things take time, think of the scale we have to search, and we don't know whether this tomb exists or not."

"Tut I know, you don't have to lecture me."

The situation was clearly tense between them which didn't help at all. Though it was difficult to breathe, they took a break near the summit of the mountain they were currently on. Silence took place between both Lara and Sam, whatever friendship they had in the past was long forgotten and buried. The only sounds that were heard was the whistling wind. Minutes passed until at the corner of her eye Lara spotted something out of place on the snowy landing. A dugout manhole was situated on the base of the mountain. There was nothing but pitch darkness, even when shining a light down the hole it wasn't enough to see what was actually there. By this point Sam noticed Lara examining something behind and wandered over.

"What have you found?" Sam queried her.

"Just a manhole, I can't see where it leads to though."

"Hmmm, well you'll have to go down and have a look then."

"Oh you must be joking."

"Nope, I'm deadly serious." Sam stated, she now trained her gun on Lara.

"But what happens if it's just a dead-end, I could be trapped in there."

"It's a risk I'm willing to take, my patience is thinning and I will sacrifice you if it brings me closer to my goals and dreams."

"Jeez Sam listen to yourself! What happened to you!? This is not you at all, it's like I'm talking to a complete stranger."

"I grew up that's what, and you've shown who you really were when you killed my father!"

"Gosh how many times do I have to say it, he was gone when that poltergeist took over him!" Lara argued the facts once again, but still after all these years Sam wasn't listening.

"Enough! What's past is past, let's get back to you going down this manhole...Start moving now or I'll start counting down!"

Lara just sighed at the prospect she was facing. Prepping herself ready, Lara carefully started her descent into the hole with Sam eagerly watching every move she made. It was so far so good, with each hand and foot placement she managed to keep grip of the tunnel leading downwards. Unfortunately this didn't last long, and Lara misplaced her left footing on the rock, feeling herself starting to slip…

"Argh no!" She cursed to herself for making the error of judgement.

Now in free-fall Lara did her best to prepare herself for any impact she may receive at the bottom. Trying to minimize the damage, Lara got into position, then saw what she was going to land into. PLUFF! She had landed in a big pile of soft snow!

"Haha that was lucky!" Lara chuckled in relief, happy that she hadn't been hurt from the impact.

"Lara...LARA! Are you alright?" The unexpected voice of Sam echoed through from the tunnel above.

"Yeah I'm fine, come down Sam it's safe."

"Why should I trust you."

"I'm alive aren't I?"

"True, okay I'm coming down."

With Sam incoming shortly Lara moved out of the way and before you know it PLUFF! Up ahead there was only one path to follow. Though simple as it was, it was also a dangerous one as sharp icicles had formed, ready to prick anyone who dared go through. Steady and carefully, without making any sudden movements Lara and Sam ventured pass the vicious ice cave with only a few scrapes and minor cuts.

The area opened up thereafter into a dome-like arena. This wasn't like before though, far from it. It was surreal, booming full of life. A beautiful garden surrounded the whole circumference, a variety of flowery plants and vegetation were present, full of vibrant colours. Sunlight was seeping through the ceiling, providing the plants with the nutrition they needed to be blooming as they were. A gleaming silver fountain was built into the centre with the purest of water running and circulating around the plants too. It definitely was a wonderful sight to behold, such purity and grace…

"What is this place...it's amazing!" Lara was astonished and speechless, she wondered how such revelations like this could be possible underground. Without a doubt there is a good possibility that Sam's dream was in fact a reality. She fell in love with the site…

"I know...But now I have found the tomb I don't need you anymore, my ticket is that gate over there."

Indeed as Sam said a huge gate was on the other side, awaiting to be opened. Just as Sam went for her gun, Lara made her move. She certainly wasn't going to be an easy target for Sam, so she not only disarmed her, but she also took her by complete surprise by tripping her up and in turn trained her dual pistols on Sam.

"Now who's gained the upper hand!" Lara boasted to Sam who grunted in response. Unexpectedly before Sam was allowed to retaliate, a strong voice was heard.

"STOP!"

Both girls immediately paused and looked around. No one was there though, until the gate began to open. Out came a highly armoured, fully built person who headed straight towards the arguing duo. Lara switched targets and aimed at the new arrival. As it drew nearer it became apparent that this was no ordinary human.

"I am the gatekeeper, please state your business to this sacred monastery. You are trespassing and disturbing the peace." It stated in a robotic voice.

"Monastery? To whom?" Sam questioned, having doubts whether they were in the right place.

"I can't answer your request until you stated your business, otherwise you'll be forced out!" It countered back, and Lara decided to step in.

"We're here because Sam here had a dream with strange visions, and a message appeared at the end about going to the Visionary Keepers Tomb if she wanted to see more...That's why we are here." Lara answered. The more she heard this story, the more she was intrigued by it.

'Especially after seeing this garden paradise, perhaps it is true.' She thought.

"Yes, you are in the correct place...Please follow me." The gatekeeper stated with a brief moment of analysing them. That's when Lara and Sam discovered that this gatekeeper was in fact a walking bipedal machine.

Leaving the lush garden behind, they entered the gate and were brought into the main hall. Flame bowls were lit and set up all around, providing the necessary light to see. A staircase leading upstairs was up ahead but that was the only main feature of the hall. The gatekeeper then stopped in it's tracks and faced the duo again.

"The Visionary Keepers only see one human at a time. Someone will have to wait here until they are summoned."

"I'll go first of course." Sam said without hesitation.

"Be my guest." Lara gestured, she didn't mind waiting as it will give her a chance to be in solitude and think things through.

"All confirmed then. Please follow me Miss Nishimura."

Indeed Sam went ahead following the gatekeeper machine up the stairs and then disappeared into darkness. At last alone with her thoughts, Lara contemplated on the situation she was in, and what to do next...Escape or stay. Faced with a tough choice, she thought of the benefits and drawbacks of both choices.

'If I try to escape I won't have to face Sam trying to kill me, but I will miss the opportunity of discovering the mystery of all this...If I stay, it's the exact opposite...but will they let me go?'

It was a dilemma, one trail of thought kept repeating itself in her mind though.

'Who were these so called Visionary Keepers? What do they do? What was so special about Sam that they somehow showed her those visions?'

Those questions resonated in her mind for a time, until it was too late to make an attempted escape.

'Looks like I've made my decision.' She thought as she heard the oncoming footsteps of the gatekeeper. It eventually approached Lara, oddly though Sam wasn't present and there was no sign of her…

"Are you ready Miss Croft?" The machine asked her.

"Yes, take me to your leaders." Lara smiled at the reference, and began to follow the robot.

Whilst walking behind it, Lara took the opportunity to observe the machinery fully. There was no doubt it was a technological masterpiece, yet it was so otherworldly. How was it designed and constructed? So many questions which would hopefully all be revealed soon. The gatekeeper led Lara upstairs and through a long winding corridor, again like the main hall there were flame bowls installed in both sides of it. This showed the many wooden doors that were in this corridor. Each one labelled with dates and a description in a language Lara had never seen before.

'Curious..There was also the matter of Sam's disappearance too...Did they do something to her!?'

Reaching the final door, the gatekeeper stopped and looked at Lara for one last time…

"Please enter." It said and then it deactivated itself. Lara took one glance back at the corridor they had just come through…

'No, I've come to far to turn back now.' She decided and with that she opened the door…

Inside was another experience altogether. The chamber that she now was in though dark had one noticeable amazement about it. A constellation of planets and stars were illuminated in a fantastic blue aura, moving slowly in a circular motion in the ceiling of space. It was one of the most wondrous things Lara ever saw in her life, it would have been an astronomers dream...However the awe-gazing was shortly interrupted by a voice that sounded like an echoing loud whisper. This was when Lara was met by seven shadowy hooded figures, all cloaked and stood above her. It had a very similar feeling of being in a courtroom with Lara being held on trial.

"Ah we've been expecting you! We congratulate you adventurer on your abilities and determination to find us. Welcome to our sanctuary, allow us to introduce ourselves...We are the Visionary Keepers. Outcasts and rejected from society, we do not exist in the real world. Our purpose in life is to preserve and protect the knowledge we've learnt throughout the ages. Furthermore we hide away our sacred collection of artefacts from humanity, so they cannot be used against us. In other words if you had come here to get any one of these objects, you'll be disappointed to know that we will not let you take any of them. No, what we offer is to answer one question that you desire most to be answered. Be warned, if you try anything against us you will face severe consequences. Heed our words when we say that we are not friends...we do not even like the term 'friends' as we have learnt from history that even the closest of friends can betray you, and that can't signify friendship. So stranger, what will you ask us? What has brought you to us? What has made you seek us?"

Lara was placed in a very interesting situation. There could have been a range of possible questions she could have asked them, and whether the Visionary Keepers had those answers or not. However would she be able to trust them...She thought for a moment, feeling the tension in the chamber growing as each second passed. Knowing that time was short and many eyes were narrowing down upon her, she spoke her query. Nobody in the room had expected this type of question though.

"How did this group come to formation, what are you really?"


	13. From A Galaxy Far, Far Away

**\- From A Galaxy Far, Far Away**

Pure silence descended into the chamber, it was like the world stopped moving after Lara questioned who her hosts really were.

"We've already told you who we are human!" Another mysterious loud whispering-like voice announced, but in a much harsher tone then before. Lara didn't flinch though and stood her ground.

"I don't believe you have told me the full story, just an interpretation." She confidently said to them…

Silence once again filled the room while the seven contemplated on how they were going to answer the adventurer's question.

"Very well, we shall tell you who we are and what our purpose here is, in your human language and terminologies. We seven do not originate from this planet as you've probably already established, nor not from this Solar System or this Milky Way galaxy. No, we're from a galaxy light years away...Us seven are a different species to you humans."

Their bodies started to glow, showing seven alien body shapes through their black cloaks. In reaction, all Lara could do was gasp loudly.

'Unbelievable...Extraterrestrial beings here on Earth!' It was the discovery of the century...Life outside of this planet. The glow faded and the chamber eventually darkened back again. The voice from before resumed the explanation.

"We were given a mission around the time Planet Earth was forming. Back home we knew it was going to become something special, so we were tasked to study everything about this planet... Animals, Birds, Dinosaurs, Mammals, Reptiles, Marine Life, Insects, Landmarks, Mountains, Volcanoes, Rainforests, Seas, Plants...The list goes on, and of course not forgetting the most complex of all...humans and their civilisations.

We have not only recorded and monitored all activity since we've arrived as life started on this planet, but as we said in our previous introduction we have collected many objects, music samples and artefacts of fascination, including a lot of man-made items. Even as we speak we are sending the data to our home planet on an encrypted link that is unreadable to your receivers here on Earth. Once we have finished our mission on this planet, we will also take the objects with us too."

"Which will be just before Earth gets destroyed and ceases to exist." Lara theorised, feeling spooked that everyone who has ever lived have been spied on without knowledge by these seven beings…

"Correct, you catch on pretty well human. We have now explained to you the reason as to why we are here..." But before the voice could carry on, Lara quickly moved onto the subject of Sam.

"Why did you contact Sam? How did you show her all of those things she spoke of in her dreams!?"

"Sam was chosen as part of a social experiment we are conducting, testing how humans think and react in certain situations. We must say that the results from this are interesting as well as astounding, and with that she had fulfilled her usefulness."

Yet again Lara couldn't believe what she was hearing. These seven aliens toying and experimenting on human behaviour, sounding like they are happy to sacrifice lives like Kurtis's to gain their desired results.

"So I was part of your experimentation too!?" Lara angrily retorted.

"Yes, we knew Sam would try some way of getting you involved when we displayed the message about finding the Visionary Keepers Tomb in her dream, even though she blamed you for killing her father. Our power knows no limit...We can telepathically put visions into living minds and predictably if it's negative they try and forget it, however if it's positive they chase after that particular dream.

Love is another interesting factor if one was to add it into the mix, as it causes beings to do actions that aren't expected at all. Take for example you Lara Croft...Before this Kurtis Trent who is very dear to you died, you were determined to retire from adventuring and even forgot about the postcard that Sam sent about us when you got engaged. But after he died you didn't mourn for long and suddenly here you are..."

As soon as they mentioned Kurtis's name, something had sparked Lara's anger. Now knowing the main root of reason of Kurtis's death, she had enough of hearing from these seven.

"Enough! You should stop with these experiments, you could risk a lot of lives just to get these so called results." Lara tried to argue. Who knows how long these experiments had gone on for and what effect it has had throughout life on Earth. She had hoped they would see it like that, but her argument was futile.

"No! The experiments must continue for our research. We must study every aspect of human life and behaviour for our home planet...Anyway we've revealed too much to you and that concludes our time."

The atmosphere of the room had changed from a welcoming one into a tense one.

"So I'm allowed to make my leave then?" Lara sarcastically questioned, knowing all too well that they would either trapped her here for the rest of her life or kill her then and there.

"Leave? That is out of the question! We must remain incognito to the rest of the world in order to complete our mission without any troubles, or anything that would risk the failure of it."

"What are you going to do with me then?" Lara wondered in this horrible situation. But the seven weren't going to reveal what they had in store for her.

"This...Farewell Lara Croft!"

Lara didn't even get a chance to respond. She yelped out as a trap door underneath her footing had just swung wide open and she fell down below.


	14. Staring Into The Eyes Of The Dragon

**-Staring Into The Eyes Of The Dragon**

Falling down into the abyss, Lara had no idea where or what she was going to land on. A slippery slope was one of the things she least expected, and once she got onto it she did her best to keep her balance. Now sliding into the unknown, Lara prepared herself ready for what could be ahead.

"Whof!" Lara landed on her hands and knees when the slope abruptly ended. She hastily recovered and checked her surroundings. There was nothing spectacular about where she was, and if the seven aliens wanted to kill her they would have done so by now. Perhaps they were playing with her and this was just another one of their tests. As Lara was about to explore the room, out of the blue it began to rumble…

'What's happening!?'...Then she saw it.

The two opposite walls had come out of shadowy concealment and they started to close in. Even worse they had blood riddled spikes on them! Time was of the essence and on the double Lara sprinted as fast as her legs would to the other side, hoping that a passage of some kind would be there to save her from getting impaled. Fortunately for her there was indeed a path forward, however it was booby trapped with swinging axes!

Having just realised this whilst sprinting away from the spikes, Lara did her best to stop her ongoing momentum. Though this wasn't going to be enough, in the heat of the moment she changed her tactic and sped up once again. Now facing the first axe, Lara used her aerobatic abilities and as the axe swung over to the right side, she performed a diving roll. Luckily there was a gap in-between the first and second blades, and just as she was completing the forward roll, Lara with her remaining strength leaped into mid-air and immediately shifted her weight downwards to stop moving any further.

The improvised move was surprisingly successful, and Lara rewarded herself by taking a little break to recompose. The other swinging blades in the passage weren't too much of a hassle for the adventurer, it became a simple pattern of wait...then run through when it was clear.

'What's next I wonder.' After the axes Lara became stuck at a dead-end.

'Blast! There must be a way pass this!' She thought for a minute or two of a plan. The tomb raider then touched the wall multiple of times to see if there was some sort of hidden switch amongst the rough surface. To her delight part of the rock that she touched had sunk in, the bad news it activated another trap door.

This time around Lara was prepared for it as it led to yet another slide spiralling downwards. She had placed her footing perfectly to skid down with ease, it also certainly helped with seeing ahead. Getting closer to the end, Lara noticed the temperature was becoming hotter. She eventually saw why…

Twelve flame-thrower statues were present in the path, six on either side ready to barbecue anything that dared cross. 'Phew! This is some obstacle course.' But Lara caught sight of what was at the end of the tunnel...'Light!' All she needed to was overcome this final trap and then she should be free.

'Let's do this.' Lara first investigated the twelve statues. Each one represented the face of a different animal along the line, all carved out with skill and precision. There was something about the order they were in though, as Lara checked what animal each statue was with the fifth one giving the strongest hint…

'Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit...Dragon...Ah ha, these are the Chinese zodiac animals from first to last in their traditional order...interesting!' Even though these statues were deadly contraptions, Lara couldn't help but admire them.

'Alas tis a shame I can't take one home as a souvenir...oh well back to the task at hand.' Lara would've definitely taken the dragon statue being the most unique and scariest of all. She could imagine it giving Winston a shocking surprise if he saw it suddenly there in her gardens. Since each statue was at varying height, this added more to the challenge of trying to get through unscathed. Planning her next series of moves, Lara went through each one and confirming whether they were viable in this situation. Once that was sorted, she took a few precious deep breaths and turned her plan into action.

Swiftly yet elegantly, the adventurer performed her manoeuvres and within the matter of a few seconds she had dodged the flames of the first five. The next round proved to be a lot more difficult due to the risk of inhaling the gathered smoke from the flames. Holding her breath and continuing the manoeuvring around the flame-throwers, Lara dived over the Snake's flame line and kept low for the Horse statue after. Seven down, five more to go…

'Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Boar, all small compared to those before them.' Lara thought whilst crouched down, she certainly was feeling the heat and felt herself starting to sweat. It was too much ground to cover with the five flame-throwers being so low. She had to think quick otherwise it would become too hot for her. The explorer looked around to see if there was anything that could help, and she spotted something on the ceiling of the tunnel.

'Monkey bars...How very convenient!' Lara cheered to herself, though she knew deep down they were placed there deliberately.

"Ouch!" Leaping from where she was, Lara did manage to grab hold of the first bar but got slightly burned on her back in the process. However in doing this allowed her to easily skip by the remaining statues. On the final reachable bar, Lara swung back and forth to gain momentum and once she had enough the adventurer then let go off the bar. Without delay she ran towards the light at the end of the tunnel, and before she knew it Lara was outside.

'Phew! Made it!' Happiness had filled her world having overcome the traps set for her, unfortunately this feeling wasn't going to last long…

Unexpectedly a bell from out of nowhere began to ring aloud, causing echoes and vibrations to the mountainous region. Everywhere was shaking as the ringing went on, even Lara had to cover her ears from the heavy pitch...until it eventually halted.

'What on earth was that about!?' Lara wondered as she frantically eyed her surroundings to find out the whereabouts of the supposed bell that had rung. Though the bell was nowhere in sight, something else had caught Lara's full attention.

The sound of large wings flapping beneath the mountain crevice was heard, followed closely by a monstrous growl. Then face to face Lara now understood what the purpose of that bell was...Staring at the mythical creature eye to eye the bell had indeed summoned a dragon!


	15. Swan Song Of The Mighty Tomb Raider

**\- Swan Song Of The Mighty Tomb Raider **

'Oh my gosh…' Lara was driven speechless by the mere sight of the humongous beast, for that moment in time she couldn't tell her body to do anything. The dragon gave out one belt of a roar in seeing it's new prey. RAAAWWWWWRRRRRR! This meant war!

Coming back to her senses after that ear-piercing noise, instantly Lara went for her signature dual pistols and opened fire upon the wings of the dragon. In doing this tactic she had hoped it would eventually take away the airborne advantage the monster had. The dragon caught on to what she was trying to do with her pea-shooters and in response it gave it's target a demonstration of the ferocious power within. Inhaling the fresh cold air that would very soon be converted into red flame, the dragon got into position to make a good roasting. A burst of pure ruby flame came shooting out of the beast's mouth, causing the female adventurer to retreat back to the tunnel that brought her out here.

'Phew! That was too close!' Lara thought whilst huffing and puffing from exhaustion. With her skin barely intact, Lara took a peek to see where this almighty creature was now situated. Despite the damage done by Lara's bullets to it's wings, the dragon still managed to fly even with some pain added. It circled round the mountains like a buzzard, waiting ever so patiently for it's target to dare come out of her hole.

'How am I going to defeat something of that size!?' Lara checked how much ammo she had left for her 9mm dual pistols...More than enough, though she wished she had something with a lot more fire-power. Her stomach started to grumble all of a sudden in the tense moment.

'Boy, if I make it out of here alive I'm definitely treating myself to a massive dinner!' A couple of minutes passed and during that time as the dragon continuously went round and round like a merry-go-round, Lara tried to study the surreal beast, seeing if she could spot any weak points. It's wings was one of them but it will be very difficult to target them from afar, plus they were in motion too. She next thought of the eyes to blind the monster, but she can only do that with ease when the dragon was in close proximity. Finally there was the body with it's scales acting as impregnable armour. However to Lara's fortune yet again there was a weak point on the dragon. At it's lower abdomen there was an exposed wound that had not been fully healed. It was there Lara planned her line of attack. Reloading her guns ready to fire, Lara stepped out of her hiding place.

BANG! BANG! BANG! The gunfire wasn't from Lara's pistols though, it came from underneath her. Looking down there was the person she least expected to see…

"Sam!" Lara called out to her as the dragon hid away momentarily. She too looked exhausted, no doubt went through the same type of trap trial that Lara encountered earlier.

"Ah Lara! Still alive I see." Sam retorted back at her.

"I could say the same about you!" Lara shouted in reply. Just then the dragon interrupted their short conversation with a great snarl.

STOMP! STOMP! STOMP! STOMP! Piles of snow began to fall along the mountainside as the dragon landed and watched the duo from above.

"There's no time, we must bring this dragon down! Actually I was thinking of giving it a name." Sam told Lara, oddly she started to sound like her old self and Lara joined in with the banter.

"How about we call him Steve?" Lara joked.

"I was thinking this particular one was more of a Barry, would you agree?"

"Oh yeah suits him more, henceforth you are now known as Barry the Dragon!" Lara chuckled, it was nice having this sort of interaction with Sam again, it reminded her of happier old times. The newly named Barry swooped down to Lara's direction, almost doing it in a tackle style. In the nick of time she rolled out of the way, but not without feeling the tremendous rumble that soon followed and swept her off her feet. As the dragon crashed into the mountain cliff, not only did it break part of the rock formation but it also gave out one gigantic roar in agony. Sam at a different level had to dash out of the way from the falling debris. The beast then flew out of sight, no doubt planning it's next dastardly move. Lara returned to the edge to see if Sam was alright…

"Sam! Are you okay?" She called out to her.

"Yeah just barely, how are you holding up?"

"I'm just grateful we've made it this far!"

"Same here…Lara…I want to apologise for the events that have happened so far...I was naive and driven but now I know the truth…For murdering Kurtis too...I know that is unforgivable and nothing can change that, but if I die I wanted you to understand...What I saw, what they showed, I wanted to believe and nothing was going to stand in the way of that for me." Sam explained. Trying to hold back the tears after remembering the horrific memory of Kurtis's death, Lara thought for a few seconds until she gave her response.

"Save it for later Sam, we're going to get through this alive!" Lara confidently said.

"...Thank you Lara. You keep proving time and time again that you are a strong woman." Sam complemented her. Lara was taken aback by the sudden personality change, but she still kept her guard up.

"Thanks...This doesn't mean I will forgive you though, far from it. What you did was inexcusable." Lara stated very clearly, and Sam got the message. She nodded at Lara in reply.

"Now let's get Barry the Dragon, can you see him from where you are?" Sam asked. Lara looked around to no avail.

"Nope, can't see him anywhere!"

"Hmm I wonder..."

Ten minutes passed with no sign of the dragon, just the sound of the whistling chilly wind blowing by. Both Sam and Lara were on the verge of thinking of how they were going to get down safely, until the dragon decided to make a surprise reappearance. Full of reinvigorated energy, the great monster arranged to pick off one target at a time. The first target chosen was Sam.

"Watch out Sam! Barry is coming straight for you!"

"Don't worry I see him!"

A bombardment of bullets came flying out from their weapons, however it wasn't enough to dissuade the determined dragon. It darted in Sam's location and got it's clawed talons ready to grab the targeted prey. Unfortunately for Sam, she had paid the price when she misjudged the unexpected pincer move it made. Having got Sam within it's power, it took hold of her and pushed her to the ground. Shocked, Lara couldn't do anything but carry on firing her pistols at the beast, though it seemed to have little effect. In her dying breath, Sam spoke out her last two words…

"Lara...Goodbye..." Thereafter she was crushed by the dragons heavy weight.

"SAM!" Lara cried out, all of her feelings and emotions had been poured out in that burst. It was exactly more or less the same feeling as when Kurtis had died. The pain of losing someone so dear to your heart despite all the terrible things they had done was unbearable. It felt like part of her soul was torn and gone when Sam died moments ago. Lara was shaken…

Having crushed the first of it's enemies, the dragon triumphantly howled in victory. Though this didn't last long as it remembered there was still one more enemy above to dispose. Proudly the beast flapped it's heavily damaged wings to be at the same level as the adventurer. In fact it was nothing short of a miracle that it could still fly. It levitated above Lara and prepared to deliver the final blow. At this stage the emotional Lara had unleashed her fury.

She wasn't going to give up the fight...With sharpened senses from a mixture of anger and adrenaline Lara took aim. Firing at double the velocity, she was in the best position to shoot the dragon's wound that she saw earlier and indeed she did. Whatever that wound was linked to, Lara's pistol ammo took super effect on it and out of the blue the dragon couldn't take no more. It gave one swan song of a cry and started to fall from the sky.

'If only the opportunity had presented itself earlier…' Lara regrettably thought, it could've saved Sam. But she tried not to dwell on what has already happened. Instead Lara had bigger matters to attend to. As the dragon's deceased body fell, it became apparent that she was in danger of it falling straight on her and meeting a similar fate to Sam. Due to the speed at which the large beast was falling, Lara wouldn't of been able to reach the cave's crevice she had previously came out off. The only alternative path she could take was down, but even that was risky as it was quite a drop. Running out of time, Lara took hold of one of her axes and then proceeded to drop down from the cliff.

CRASH! An almighty earthquake erupted throughout the area. Lara had just managed to bury the sharp point of her axe into the rock, stopping herself free-falling and hanging into the mountainside until she felt the massive vibrations on the palm of her clenched hand. That wasn't the only environmental happening caused by the impact though as Lara was soon to find out. Leaving the axe she was dangling on in the rock, Lara landed on the next level below with no injury. Her eyes widened in seeing the chain reaction that was now set in motion.

'Oh no...AVALANCHE!'

The mass flow of rock and snow were coming down at quite a pace from above. Lara had no choice but to run!

Avoiding being gobbled up by the incoming avalanche, Lara jumped down to the last level below, which luckily enough wasn't that much of a drop and from where she was now it was just one long home-run...That's if she was able to make it. From out of nowhere Lara heard the sound of helicopter rotor whirling nearby, and soon after it came into her view. She looked up and the side door had been slid to one side and amazingly Ayesha was there.

"Lara! I knew you were alive! Quickly now come to us!" Ayesha shouted across. Lara waved acknowledging she heard what was said, and carried on sprinting as fast as her legs can go. With the snow being thick, she was already at a disadvantage and even worse the avalanche was closing in rapidly.

"Get us closer Dan, we need to get Lara!" Ayesha ordered the pilot.

"I can't! Any closer and we'll be dragged in that avalanche!" The pilot warned.

"Darn!" Ayesha cursed. She glanced out of the cockpit to see Lara's positioning. Yes she drew nearer to the helicopter, but that avalanche was right on her tail. There was nothing for it in this dire situation.

"Lara! Jump! I'll catch you I promise!" Ayesha called out to her as one last resort.

Gathering as much strength and momentum as she could in her aching body, Lara reached a point of no return and made her attempted leap for the hovering helicopter.

'I'm going to make it...I'm going to make it.' Lara kept repeating inside her mind. She stretched out as far as she could to reach Ayesha's hand…

At a crucial point where Lara always had luck on her side, sadly for her the tables had turned. So close to Ayesha's palm, Lara felt herself falling down away from the helicopter...She had failed and was soon engulfed by the raging avalanche.

"LARA!" Ayesha couldn't believe it...A tear ran down to the side of her face as the truth became reality and very real...Lara was gone.


	16. Never Forget

**\- Never Forget...**

Winston stared for ages into the green landscape of the manor's gardens, sitting in silence on the garden chair daydreaming and wondering what life has in store for him next. A year had passed since the incident at the Himalayas, and during that time there was no news whatsoever about Lara, whether they had found her body or any clue related. Ayesha popped round a couple of times to see how Winston was doing and for lengthy chats too, that ranged from what each other was up to at the time to the mystery surrounding Lara. Somehow it didn't make any sense.

Helping out with the initial search for Lara's body, Ayesha managed to pinpoint the location of where she fallen...However nothing was there. Having now been presumed dead after six months of no results from the many searches, Winston had been keeping Lara's home clean and tidy in hope that one day she would come back. As time went by though it became less likely that was going to happen, thus the manor eventually got repossessed.

Today was Winston's last day as housekeeper to Lara's home as he was going to retire. Everything in the house was pristine, all of Lara's possessions including all of the artefacts she had collected throughout her many adventures had been donated to various places like museums etc. When the time came for Winston to leave the manor for one last time he went back inside to pick up the last of his belongings and took a good look back in the hall.

Memories came flooding to him of the happy times spent during his time here. He took a deep breath and glanced back at the door. In that moment something peculiar happened. The main door all of the sudden had been swung open and bright light had filled the whole doorway. This temporarily blinded Winston, though he did manage to make out a strange shadowy figure standing in the doorway, and not long after they had soon shut the door behind.

**The End**

A/N: We've come to the end of what could possibly be my last Tomb Raider fanfic, though I may make another one if an idea comes along or go a different route. This story is dedicated to Crescent Moon Jessica -151294 and Ferilium for their fantastic support and encouragement, you guys are awesome and I highly recommend checking out their stories. I want to thank you for reading this story, it has been a fun journey for the past four years writing stories on Lara's adventures and you never know it could continue. A special thanks to the following people too:

\- Friends and family

\- Makers of FanFiction

\- Fanfiction writers that I've spoken to or who have read my stories including:

Crescent Moon Jessica -151294

Ferilium

Deadly Fandoms

gyikhu

Chris Nest

Greenkey2

Saturn95

Nuova Luna

Wyverndragon

Kurtis Trent 25

Periapt Shards

Plus anyone who I may have missed

\- Former employees at Core Design

\- Eidos Interactive (Now Square Enix)

\- Crystal Dynamics

\- And to you the reader

Thank you,

Josh14Raider


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